State Of The Qusan: Roses Really Smell Like Boo-Boo-oo

I have to admit, I was a little worried when pro-life, Harry Reid was selected to be the Minority Leader. But, so far I think he has been doing an excellent job of keeping his foot up the Republican's behinds. Him clarifying the partisan verbiage regarding personal or private accounts is just another example.

"What's in a name? Would a personal account by any other name smell as sweet?

Apparently not, according to strategists in the two political parties.

In the Social Security debate, one of the most ferocious struggles is over language, whether President Bush is proposing to create 'personal' or 'private' accounts in the program, whether he is really proposing the 'privatization' of Social Security.

Mr. Bush complained last week that ' 'privatization' is a trick word,' intended to 'scare people.' Senator Harry Reid of Nevada, the Democratic leader, interrupted a news conference to correct a reporter who asked about 'personal' accounts.

'It's 'privatization,' ' Mr. Reid said, adding that 'personal accounts' was 'the Republican term.'

The staff of the House Franking Commission, which regulates the political content of Congressional mail that goes out at taxpayer expense, has weighed in with advice on which versions of the word 'privatize' can be used to describe the president's plan. (The distinction revolves around the difference between 'full' and 'partial' privatization.)

This is not simply a semantic exercise. Real issues are at stake, the sides agree. Mr. Bush has proposed letting younger workers divert part of their payroll taxes into private (or personal) investment accounts.

Democrats say that amounts to a fundamental revision of the 70-year-old program, draining huge sums of money from it, reducing the government's role and exposing individuals to far more risk - in short, at least partly 'privatizing' it."